Visit From An Old Friend
by Chibi StarLyte
Summary: While everyone else is out doing their own thing, Genis is studying at Palmacosta Academy. He begins to feel lonely, then Zelos shows up...ZelosxGenis. Set after the game. Oneshot drabble.


Man, I have got to stop this late-night writing spree. Xx It's about 1:15 in the morning and I have to wake up at 6:00.

Anyway, here's another one of my Tales of Symphonia ficlets, this time featuring the lovely couple ZelosxGenis! My first yaoi ship in ToS. Of course it deserves some love...except this story is kind of...not that great. Oh well.

I got the idea for this after my sister and I completed the side quest at Palmacosta Academy, when Genis takes that one test and scores better than the student who challenged him...yeah, it'd be kind of cool if Genis returned there to study.

**Disclaimer: I don't own Genis, Zelos, Raine, Lloyd, Sheena, Presea, Regal, or Colette. Or Palmacosta. Even if I think Pensacola, Florida should be renamed Palmacosta.**

--

The giant book slammed shut with a heavy thud, followed by a tired sigh. Dust flew from the yellowed pages and scattered about the air. A pale hand with a blue Exsphere shoved the text aside, and Genis allowed his head to fall upon the wooden desktop. Who knew nuclear physics would be so challenging, especially for him? All that stuff about photon beams and the fission versus fusion bile…the half-elf was just plain sick of it.

He lazily lifted his head, half-lidded cerulean eyes glancing out the window of his room. Various hues of oranges, pinks, and purples swirled about in the sky, magically mixing together to form a scene of sunset. Hours had passed since Genis had started studying…and night would fall very soon. It would be opportune to go out for a stroll around Palmacosta before the darkness settled in.

Slowly shoving his wooden chair backwards, the white-haired boy rose from his seat and stretched. He groaned and squeaked, feeling the ache in his muscles slowly dissipate. His jacket dangled from the lower left bedpost, but was quickly removed upon the decision that it might be chilly outside. After all, the cool breeze that blew in from the sea in the evening was enough to bite ruthlessly at the skin.

As Genis stepped outside the Palmacosta Academy, memories immediately flooded his mind; he remembered the very first time he, Lloyd, and the rest of the gang first came to Palmacosta almost a year ago. In reality, it seemed so much longer than that…and boy, those were the simple days. Back then, the journey was considerably less troublesome than the dangers and predicaments they had all gotten themselves into much later on. The end of the worlds was nearly inevitable at one point…yet everything turned around in their favour. Everything became peaceful after that, and everyone decided to go their separate ways…

Lloyd took Sheena along with him in his quest for Exspheres. Regal, Presea, and Zelos all returned to Tethe'alla for reasons of their own. Colette remade her home in Iselia; from what Genis had heard, she was great with the children of the village and proceeded to teach a bit at the school. Raine set out on a mission to protest for half-elf equality and implored that her younger brother stayed behind, "for his own good and well-being," as she had so unfairly stated.

So here he was…studying in Palmacosta, at the very academy he had been accepted to long ago…and as much as he wanted this for such a long time, he felt dreadfully lonely. He had no one. Not only did his half-blood race prove to be a problem with his ability to make friends, his intelligence also proved to be an issue. How stupid it was, he decided, that he was sought out by the academy because he was some sort of genius, yet it was that very trait that kept him distanced from the others.

Not only were the other students intimidated by his smarts, they also grew jealous of his affinity for magic…and his capacity to fight. He was being destroyed by the very things he took pride in.

It just wasn't fair.

The half-elf let out an angry snort as he strolled down the cobblestone streets, his head angled toward the ground, his hands shoved into the pockets of his jacket.. He kicked pebble in front of him, sending it flying far ahead.

"Ow!"

Genis' head snapped up at the sudden voice. He halted and stood straight up, his brow cocked in curiosity. His ocean irises widened in slight shock as he caught sight of a mess of bright red hair. "Zelos…?"

The former Tethe'allan Chosen grinned, rubbing the spot on his forehead where the rogue pebble struck him. "Hey there, brat," he greeted, striding over to the surprised boy.

The half-elf shook his head in disbelief. What the hell was Zelos doing in Palmacosta?

"How are ya doing?" the red-head inquired, hovering his hand above the younger one's head. "Looks like you've grown a bit since the last time I saw ya," he commented with a light-hearted chuckle.

"Shut up," Genis replied curtly, slapping Zelos' hand away.

"Aw, come on, I was complimenting you, little one!" Zelos fought back.

"Sure you were…seeing as you just called me 'little one,'" Genis retorted. "Nice way to contradict yourself."

After a short pause, both of them let out small laughs.

"Ya got me, brat," the Tethe'allan said, combing his hair back with his gloved hand. "Still as witty as ever."

"Naturally," the white-haired boy said smugly, placing his hands on his hips. A moment of silence ensued until he deflated his ego. "So…fancy seeing you here. What are you doing in Sylvarant?" he asked, his tone taking on a more serious tenor.

"Ah, well, you see…," Zelos began, rubbing the back of his head. "I ran into your gor-geous sister not too long ago. She was staying in Meltokio for the night. Told me you were studying here."

"…So you came here to see _me_?"

"Bingo."

Genis' brows furrowed in confusion. His cerulean orbs merely stared at the taller man, a small smile gracing his lips. "That's…awfully nice of you, Zelos," he muttered, his cheeks tinted a light pink. It was fantastic to see an old friend again…he didn't feel so alone.

"I try," the red-head said, shrugging his shoulders. He held his arms out to the young half-elf. "Now, c'mere and give me a hug."

The white-haired boy hesitated for a moment, then stepped forward into Zelos' arms. The Tethe'allan pulled him closer and embraced him tightly. Genis smiled into his chest and sighed.

"Now," Zelos said, releasing Genis from the hug, "show me this school of yours."

--

"Damn, brat…I didn't know you were _this _smart!" the red-head exclaimed. He was lying on Genis' bed, holding the massive nuclear physics book above his head and flipping through the pages. "I don't understand _any _of this stuff…"

"It's not that hard once you memorize all the vocabulary and such," the half-elf replied, balancing his chair on its hind legs and leaning it against the desk. His booted feet rested on the end of his bed.

"So you say," Zelos muttered, dropping the brick of a book atop the bouncy mattress. "Well, I suppose if you're smart enough for _nuclear physics,_ then you're deserving of a little something…" He sat up and reached for his bag that he had carelessly dropped on the floor next to Genis' bed. He unzipped the largest pocket and fished through it, finally pulling out a book not nearly as big as the physics book, but definitely much older-looking.

Curious, the white-haired boy rested his chair on all fours and stood up, moving to sit next to Zelos on the bed. "What is it?" he questioned, tilting his head to the side. "Well, I mean, it's obviously a book, but…"

Zelos opened the book, placing the front cover on Genis' lap and the back cover on his own. "Look," he said, pointing to the open page. "Recognize that?"

"A bit…," Genis whispered, squinting to read the faded print. "Wait…this is written in the language of the angels!"

"Yeah," the red-head confirmed with a smile. "I found it among a collection of books I have at my house. I'm not very well-versed in the angelic language, despite being the Chosen, so I thought you might like it."

The half-elf closed the book and picked it up, hugging it tightly. His excited cerulean eyes met those of Zelos and he smiled brightly. "Thank you so much, Zelos!"

"Heh, no prob, brat…er, I mean Genis," the Tethe'allan corrected himself, flashing his own grin in return.

Genis laid the book in his lap, running his fingers gingerly over the aged cover. "Zelos, this…this really means a lot to me," he said in a hushed tone, the smile disappearing from his lips. "Not just the book…I mean, you coming here to see me and stuff…it gets lonely around here, you know?" With a sigh, he rested his head on Zelos' shoulder and closed his eyes. "Thank you."

Instinctively, the red-head wrapped his arm around the younger boy and pulled him closer. "You're welcome," was all he could really say. His free hand lightly traced the half-elf's jaw line. He felt him shiver slightly at the touch. Zelos leaned down, touching his nose to Genis'. The white-haired boy's eyes slid open. "Genis…"

"Hm…?"

Well, this was slightly awkward.

The Tethe'allan swallowed hard and took in a deep breath. "Can I…kiss you?"

Genis blinked, his eyes growing wide, a dark blush creeping onto his cheeks. A few seconds later, he smiled and nodded. "…Yes. You can."

"Great." Zelos closed the distance between them, taking the half-elf's lips in a gentle kiss. He rested his hand on the back of Genis' neck, beneath his mass of silvery-white hair. Genis rested his hand on Zelos' cheek, his pinkie reaching down just far enough to touch the red-head's jaw.

The kiss lasted for a couple blissful moments before the younger boy pulled back, his eyes smiling up at Zelos with that familiar youthful, innocent twinkle.

For the first time since he had come to Palmacosta, Genis actually felt…happy.

--

End randomness. Hope you enjoyed this. Um, review if you'd like.

Until next time,  
Chibi


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